🥀Chapter 03🥀

Jessica was standing exactly where one of her text said she'd be.

She was leaning against the second big pillar by the entrance, holding a glass of champagne in each hand. It looked like she'd given up on waiting around and just decided to be her own bartender. She was wearing this deep red dress that did absolutely everything it was supposed to do, and she knew it, too.

The second Selene spotted her, Jessica looked up and locked eyes. She immediately started weaving through the crowd with that classic Jessica energy, fast, and trailing a scent of peach and rose perfume that reached Selene a second before she did.

"Happy birthday, honey." Jessica threw her arms around her. It was a real, tight hug, the exact same way they'd been greeting each other since they were fifteen. Neither of them had ever found a reason to change it.

"Thank you." Selene hugged her back, and for just three seconds, she let herself completely mean it.

Jessica pulled away.

She held Selene out at arm's length, somehow keeping both champagne glasses totally upright, which was honestly a talent and stared at her face. She was reading her expression like a book she'd spent her whole life studying.

Jessica had known Selene for eleven years. By this point, she knew every single version of Selene's "everything is fine" mask. She knew the notes, but she also knew the silences,the places where Selene was holding back her feelings instead of showing them.

And she knew the exact face Selene was wearing right now.

She'd only seen it twice before. Once when Selene's grandpa, Edmund, passed away. And once when Selene found out what her dad did to Edmund's old study.

It was that exact look.

"What happened," Jessica said. It wasn't even a question. She just stated it.

"I'm fine..."

"Selene Elaine Calloway." Jessica tilted her head slightly. "I've known your face longer than some people have known their own. Do not stand there in that dress, with that look, and tell me you're fine. We both know it's a lie, and honestly, I'm insulted you even tried it."

Selene stared at her for a second.

Then she let out a long, heavy breath, like she was finally letting go of the tension.

"My dad," she said quietly. "He wants me to marry someone."

Jessica's eyes narrowed into total focus. "Okay. Like... an arranged marriage thing? An actual deal?"

"He's an old man, Jessie."

Jessica's focused look completely exploded.

"WHAT?" she gasped. It was way too loud. A bunch of people within ten feet instantly turned to look, and the champagne glasses in her hands wobbled dangerously.

"Keep your voice down...."

"Sorry, sorry!" Jessica scrambled closer, dropping her voice to a frantic whisper that somehow felt just as loud as the shout. "I mean... what? What old man? Where did an old man even come from? What is going on?"

"His name is Reginald Fitch. He's sixty-one. Apparently, he's super rich and has tons of connections, and he's totally cool with the fact that I'm twenty-five today and he's old enough to be my dad's dad." Selene reached out and took one of the champagne glasses from Jessica's hand. She really needed a drink. "He offered me a yacht."

Jessica blinked, stunned. "A yacht."

"If I give him a son."

There was a dead silence between them.

"Selene."

"I know."

"A yacht."

"Yeah, I heard it the first time, too."

"I..." Jessica pressed her free hand against her forehead. "What did you say to them?"

"I told them both they had lost their minds and I walked away."

Jessica just stared at her. Then, a mix of pure shock and fierce pride washed over her face. "Good. Obviously. But..." She lowered her voice even more. "What about the company? Your dad still hasn't..."

"He's giving it to Brian."

"Brian?" Jessica spit the name out like she was talking about a ghost story she never actually believed. "The... the son? The one you told me about?"

"Yep."

"Over you? After everything you've done?" Jessica stopped, shaking her head. "Selene, you gave years of your life to that company. You were in that building before the cleaning staff some mornings."

"I know."

"...and he's just handing the keys to a guy who has never even walked through the front door?"

"Jessie." Selene said it softly. She wasn't trying to shut her down,honestly, Jessica's anger was the only thing making her feel sane right now, but she just needed her own voice to ground her. "I know. I know all of it."

Jessica looked at her, and the anger softened into something practical. She got that look she always got when she loved you and wanted to fix the problem instead of just stressing out about it.

"What are you going to do?" she asked.

Selene didn't answer right away.

Around them, the party hummed along. Glasses clinked, people laughed, and the string quartet started playing something a little warmer. The massive chandeliers poured golden light over the crowd, totally unbothered by her drama, looking beautiful and expensive.

"Honestly, Jessie?" She felt the heavy weight of the words as she said them. "I have absolutely no idea."

And then her eyes drifted.

She wasn't looking for anyone in particular, just staring across the room while her brain tried to process everything. Her gaze passed the bar, the dancing couples, and the huddle of her dad's business partners who were all pretending to like each other.

Then she stopped.

There was a guy standing at the far end of the room. He had a drink in his hand, and he was wearing a dark suit that fit him perfectly, the kind of look that belongs to people who are rich enough that they don't have to show off. He wasn't standing in the middle of a circle. He wasn't performing for anyone. He was just... there. Perfectly still. It was the kind of stillness that meant he was watching absolutely everything, but didn't want anyone to notice him doing it.

Selene froze, her champagne glass stopping halfway to her mouth.

"What are you looking at?" Jessica turned, tracking Selene's eyes through the crowd with the perfect accuracy they'd practiced since high school. Her eyes locked on him. And stayed there.

"Finn Leighton," Jessica whispered.

She turned back to Selene very slowly. Her expression had changed from worried to a mix of fascination and mild panic, the exact face someone makes when they watch a chess player grab a piece, but they can't figure out the move yet.

"Selene," her voice was completely serious now. "What are you planning?"